WHO WILL WIN?
Spinosaurus
CROCO-RAAWR
Alligator
BELLOW-CHOMP
THE SETUP

Spinosaurus vs Alligator

Spinosaurus
Spinosaurus
Alligator
Alligator

Pretend they meet in river country. Dinosaurs lived long ago. Look at the facts. Then you pick.

Would they meet?

No. Spinosaurus and Alligator did not live at the same time. This meeting is pretend.

This is pretend and based on facts. Real animals usually hide or leave.

Read the facts. Make your card. The page waits to pick.

Corner A

Spinosaurus

Spinosaurus aegyptiacus · A sail-backed river hunter longer than a bus.

Spinosaurus
Home
Mid-Cretaceous rivers of North Africa · Lived in Africa long ago
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Spinosaurus is giant.

River specialist.

A snout that may have sensed pressure in water, like a crocodile's face.

Boss of a Cretaceous river.

  • Spinosaurus is giant and not very fast.
  • Giant fish, and probably other animals that came to drink.
  • Cretaceous North Africa, about 95 million years ago — rivers and mangrove-ish coasts, not the Serengeti.

Family: Other spinosaurids like Baryonyx and Suchomimus.

Corner B

Alligator

Alligator mississippiensis · A living log with a U-shaped grin.

Alligator
Home
American swamps · Lives in North America
Food
Meat
Group
Lives alone
Size
Alligator is big.

Ambush from the float.

Night river hunter.

Looks like a log with a secret.

  • Alligator is big and not very fast.
  • Fish, turtles, birds, mammals — swamp buffet, all you can chomp.
  • Freshwater marshes and slow rivers.

Family: Crocodiles and caimans.

TO SCALE!

SIZE & WEIGHT

Stand them next to a grown-up. Who is bigger and heavier?

1.70 m

Grown-up

2.8 m

Spinosaurus to scale

Spinosaurus

0.50 m

Alligator to scale

Alligator

Height to scale. A grown-up is 1.7 m.

Spinosaurus7,000 kg

Longer than T. rex, maybe as long as a city bus, with a sail that could top a doorway.

Alligator360 kg

Can stretch as long as a small car.

Spinosaurus

2.8 m · 7,000 kg

Spinosaurus is giant. 7,000 kg.

Alligator

0.50 m · 360 kg

Alligator is big. 360 kg.

Kilograms are honest. A small animal can still have a strong tool.

Who would you pick for size?

TOOLKIT!

TOOLS

Teeth, claws, horns, venom, kick — what tools do they have?

  • Weapon: Croc-snout plus canoe claws
  • Armor: Sail and dense bones
  • Senses: A snout that may have sensed pressure in water, like a crocodile's face.

Spinosaurus · labeled field diagram

  • Weapon: Trapdoor jaws
  • Armor: Osteoderm jacket
  • Senses: Night river hunter.

Alligator · labeled field diagram

Spinosaurus2000 psi bite
Alligator3000 psi bite

Spinosaurus

Croc-snout plus canoe claws

Tool: croc-snout plus canoe claws. Bite: 2,000 psi.

Alligator

Trapdoor jaws

Tool: trapdoor jaws. Bite: 3,000 psi.

A bite number is only one tool. Coils and kicks count too.

Whose tools would you trust?

ZOOM!

SPEED

Who gets there first?

Spinosaurus
18 km/h
Alligator
24 km/h
Spinosaurus18 km/h
Alligator24 km/h

Spinosaurus

18 km/h

Spinosaurus can go 18 km/h. That is not very fast.

Alligator

24 km/h

Alligator can go 24 km/h. That is not very fast.

A fast animal can miss. A slow one only has to connect.

Who takes the speed card?

HOME MAP!

HOME

They meet in river country. Who is built for this place?

N. AmericaS. AmericaEuropeAfricaAsiaAustraliaAntarctica
SpinosaurusAlligatorBoth

Meeting biome: river country. Colored land is fossil range for dinosaurs and living range for zoo animals.

Spinosaurus

This is home · Lived in Africa long ago

Spinosaurus lives in places like river country.

Alligator

This is home · Lives in North America

Alligator lives in places like river country.

No. Spinosaurus and Alligator did not live at the same time. This meeting is pretend.

Who gets the home point?

MENU!

FOOD

How do they get lunch?

Spinosaurus
Meat · River specialist.
Alligator
Meat · Ambush from the float.

Spinosaurus

Meat · River specialist.

Giant fish, and probably other animals that came to drink.

Alligator

Meat · Ambush from the float.

Fish, turtles, birds, mammals — swamp buffet, all you can chomp.

A plant eater is not 'safe.' Hippos and elephants still end arguments.

Whose hunting or defending helps more?

MOOD!

MOOD

Alone vs team. This rumble is one vs one.

Spinosaurus
Lives alone
Alligator
Lives alone
Spinosaurus7 grit /10
Alligator7 grit /10

Spinosaurus

Lives alone

Boss of a Cretaceous river. Grit: 7/10.

Alligator

Lives alone

Looks like a log with a secret. Grit: 7/10.

Pack and pride animals lose their backup in a 1-v-1.

Who is better for a solo meeting?

PING!

BRAINS

Who notices first and thinks next?

Spinosaurus
4/10
Alligator
4/10
Spinosaurus4 brains /10
Alligator4 brains /10

Spinosaurus

4/10

A snout that may have sensed pressure in water, like a crocodile's face.

Alligator

4/10

Night river hunter.

In the wild, brains often mean leave before it starts.

Who would you score for noticing?

COUSINS!

FAMILY

Who are they related to?

Spinosaurus
Spinosaurus aegyptiacus
Alligator
Alligator mississippiensis

Spinosaurus

Spinosaurus aegyptiacus

Other spinosaurids like Baryonyx and Suchomimus.

Alligator

Alligator mississippiensis

Crocodiles and caimans.

Cousins are clues, not a score.

Not a fight point. Who has the wilder family story?

WILD CARD!

SPECIAL

What special move did they evolve?

Spinosaurus
River-Ambush Paddle
Alligator
Gator-Gap Lunge

Spinosaurus

River-Ambush Paddle

Spinosaurus was built to hunt in rivers.

Alligator

Gator-Gap Lunge

They wait like a stick.

A secret move here is a real wild tool, not a video-game combo.

Whose special move would change the meeting?

YOUR SCORECARD

Your scorecard

Tap who has each fact. Then tap who you think wins.

  • SIZE & WEIGHT

  • TOOLS

  • SPEED

  • HOME

  • FOOD

  • MOOD

  • BRAINS

  • SPECIAL

Your card: Spinosaurus 0 · Alligator 0 · still open 8

Who wins the meeting?

Keep going for the pretend meeting, then the science pick.

FWOOSH!

THEY MEET

Alligator runs first. Spinosaurus does not race. They wait in river country.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

KICK!

THE TOOLS SHOW UP

Spinosaurus is heavier. Alligator uses trapdoor jaws. Nobody is keeping a gore score.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

STOOMP!

SPECIAL MOVES

Spinosaurus tries the River-Ambush Paddle. Alligator tries the Gator-Gap Lunge. Keep your card. The last page is next.

Pretend · fact-based · not a gore-fest

THE SCIENCE PICK

Spinosaurus!

A STOMP · UNDERDOG

You skipped a final pick. The facts still stamp a champ.

On river country, Spinosaurus wins. Spinosaurus is a lot heavier. Alligator would still win some meetings at home.

In the wild, most animals skip a fight. We still judge who the bodies and the place would favor.

Science card: Spinosaurus 2 · Alligator 3 · ties 3.

Your card: Spinosaurus 0 · Alligator 0.

The last page follows the whole animal — body plus home — not one bar chart.

Send this fight

A friend can read the same facts.

Also starring · Alligator

Log? Nope. Champ.

Wikimedia Commons · CC. Source

1/17 · scroll